Material-handling machine



Feb. 18, 1947. c R KQEHL r MATERIAL-HANDLING MACHINE Filed Feb. 17, 1945 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 i ow 3. 3a 5 x S Charles R. Koehl and Richard Messner PatentedFeb. 18, 1947 MATERIAL- HANDLING MACHINE Charles R. Koch] and R chard Messner,

Hancock, Minn.

Application February 17, 1945, Serial No. 578,427

4 Claims.

Our invention relates to improvements in material-handling machines, and more particularly to tractor-mounted machines of the type known as front-end loaders, for gathering and/or picking up and transportin and dumping loads of various kinds of material.

A machine of the present type, conventionally includes a tractor, ordinarily of the kind commony used on farms and further includes a loading attachment for such tractor, such attachment having a load-carrying member and a boom structure supporting the same and raised and lowered by power derived from the tractor.

An object of the present invention is to provide an improved material-handling machine of the type indicated which is extremely simple, durable and inexpensive in construction and highly efficient in operation.

More specifically, it is an object of our invention to provide a machine, as above, having a lift mechanism for the boom structure powered from the tractor engine and including a rock-shaft having thereon a power arm and a lift arm, all

arranged with respect to each other and to the tractor and. boom structure, whereby said boom structure is efficiently operated in the raising, holding and lowering thereof; the over-all height of the machine is minimized, and said boom structure is simply and effectively braced against a transverse movements relative to the tractor.

Another object of the invention is to supply a machine of the instant nature constructed to facilitate the application of the loader attachment to and the removal thereof from the tractor.

An additional object of the invention is to mount the load-carrying member on the boom structure so that it is self-tilting to dump its load by gravity, another object of the invention being to provide simple and effective means for automatically restoring the gravity-tilted load-carrying member to its normal load-receiving position relative to the boom structure.

Other objects of the invention reside in the novel combination and arrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter illustrated and/or described.

In the accompanying drawings, Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a machine embodyin our invention and Fig. 2 is a plan view thereof, por tions of the machine in each of said views being broken away and/ or omitted to reveal parts which otherwise would be concealed.

Reference being had to the drawings, wherein similar parts are designated by similar reference characters in both views, it will be seen that the illustrated embodiment of our invention includes a tractor A of familiar agricultural type having a body ID supported on front and rear wheels I I, l2. Incorporated in said body I are the usual rear axle housings l3 and extending from the rear of the body 10 is the usual power take-01f stud-shaft l4. Forwardly of the body It) and beneath the hood I5 is the usual engine (not shown), the same being conventionally geared to the rear axles l6 and to the power take-off stud-shaft l4.

Load-moving means detachably mounted on the tractor includes a boom structure B consisting of two beams I7 extendin fore and aft of the tractor A, one at either side thereof. These beams H are pivoted at their rear ends on the tractor body Ill and swing about an axis transversely of the tractor. To provide for thus pivotally mounting said beams I I, we supply a splitsleeve-mount l8 for each of the axle housings l3, each mount I8 being removably clamped to its respective housing by means of bolts I9. Each of said sleeve-mounts I8 is formed with a pair of forwardly projecting ears 2!! between which the rear end of its respective beam I! is received. A pintle 2| extending through these ears 20 and said beam I! supplies the pivotal support for the latter. The two pintles 2| are axially aligned and they are removable from the ears 20 on their respective mounts [8 to free the boom structure B from the tractor. Near their forward ends, the beams H are rigidly tied together by a crossbar 22 and at their forward extremities, said beams H are formed with notches 23 therein extending longitudinally thereof to provide forwardly opening bearings for attachment of a load-carrying member C to the boom structure B, as will soon appear. v

The invention contemplates the selective employment of load carrying members of different forms. In' the drawings, we have shown the loadcarrying member C in the form of a fork which is especially adapted for use in the handling of manure and hay, grain stocks and other vegetation. Another form of load-carrying member will consist of a scoop and will be interchangeable with the fork C and especially adapted for use in the handling of grain, earth, coal and the like. The illustrated fork C consists of a plurality of tines 24 welded intermediately thereof to a cross shaft 25. Spaced portions of said shaft 25 are received in the bearing-notches 23 in the beams I1 and removably held seated therein by screws 26 spanning said notches ahead of the shaft 25 and threaded in the beams H. In the working position of the fork C, as best seen in solid lines in Fig. 1, the main or bottom forming portions 21 of the tines 24 extend forwardly from the cross-shaft 25 longitudinally of the beam I1, while the remaining or back-forming poi tions 28 of said tines 24 extend upwardly and rearwardly from said cross-shaft 25. The upper ends of the rear portions 28 of the tines 24 are welded to a tie-brace 29 having a reinforcing and latching flange 38 extending rearwardly therefrom. The

32 and screwed into said shank 3| longitudinally thereof. The shank 3| extends upwardly from a shaft 34 rockably mounted in bearing blocks 88 on the cross-bar 22 between the beams I1. The

head 33 has a nose 38 and is formed at the base of said nose with a forwardly opening latchslot 31 providing an upwardly facing abutment surface at the bottom thereof and a downward- 1y facing abutment surface at the top thereof. The forward beveled edge of said nose 38 slopes downwardly to meet said downwardly facing abutment surface and is disposed in the arcuate path of the latching flange 38 on the fork C. .One end of the shaft 84 overreaches the beam II at the left side of the machine, its projecting end being fitted with a lever 38 having an upwardly extending arm 38 and also with a downwardly extending arm 48 which plays between pins 4|,

42 in said beam, said pins forming opposed limit stops for said lever 38. A tension spring 43, stretched between said upper arm 38 and an anchoring hook 44 on said beam normally yieldingly holds the arm 48 of lever 3-8 against the pin 42, thus stationing the latch-member D in its operative position. In such position of said latch-member D, the slot 31 in the head 32 thereof is located to accommodate the rear central portion of the latching flange 38 on the fork C when said fork is in normal working position relative to the beams l1. With said flange 38 lodged within said slot 31 between the upwardly and downwardly facing abutment surfaces at top and bottom thereof, the fork C is deprived of pivotal movement about th axis of its supporting cross-shaft 28 and is thereby disposed with its tines 24 in operative relation to receive and carry a load. Entry of the latching flange 38 into said latching slot 31 is accomplished upon the swingi ng of the fork C into working position, by the coaction of said flange 38 with the nose 38 on the head 32 of the latch-member D. This coaction of said parts 38, 38 causes the latch-member D to be swung back against the action of the spring 43 enabling the latching flange 38 to come into registry with the latching slot 31. With the latching flange 38 in registry with said slot 81, the spring 43 acts to swing the latch-member D forward and embrace said flange 38 within the slot". To alter the angularity of the folk C relative to the beams l1 and thus effect different working relationships of said fork C with respect to the boom structure B, it is only necessary to turn the stem 33 into or out of the shank 3| to shorten or elongate the latch-member D. A locknut 48 on said stem 38 is turned against the shank 3| to prevent the twisting of the head 32 out of any adjusted position in which it may be placed.

Shoes 48 attached to the lower sides of the beams ll near the forward ends thereof engage the ground to limit the descent of said ends of said bea'ms.

To lift the boom structure B by power from the tractor engine and to hold said structure elevated sses and to control its descent, we employ mechanism now to be described. This lift mechanism includes a pair of lift arms 41 issuing forwardly from opposite ends of a rock-shaft 48 arranged transversely of the tractor body l8 and removably mounted in cap-bearings 48 on brackets 88 depending from said body l8 between the front and rear wheels I2. Like the two beams H, the two lift arms 41 are disposed at opposite sides of the tractor. Each arm 41 swings u and down, its outer face lying in a plane adjacently paralleling the plane occupied by the inner face of its respective beam Extending between and through the arms 41 near the tips thereof is a cross-shaft 8|, the ends of which, outwardly of said-arms, underlie the beams 11 and provide mounting studs for roller bearings 82. Track surfaces 83 on the under sides of the beams |l ride said roller bearings 82 so that when the lift arms 41 are swung-upwardly the beams will be likewise upwardly swung. The shoes 48 have rearwardly extended portions 84 paralleling the track surfaces 83 of the beams I1 and underlying the roller bearings 82 and said portions 84 provide keepers which cooperate with said roller bearings 82 to maintain the rolling relation between the same and said track surfaces 83. Rigidly secured to one end of the transverse rockshaft 48, and braced by a brace 88 relative to the arm 41 at such end of said rock-shaft, is an upwardly extending lift lever 88 having a sheave 81 at its free end about which a hoisting cable 88 is looped. One end of this cable 88 is tied to an anchoring lug 88 on the rear axle sleevemount l8 at the same side of the tractor occupied by said lever 88. The other end of said cable 88 is attached to a reel 88 located at the rear of the tractor and driven and controlled by a clutch and brake mechanism E associated with the power take-off stud M of the tractor.

The clutch and brake mechanism E includes a case 8| mounted on arms 82 removably bolted to lugs 83 issuing rearwardly from the sleeve-mounts i8. Journaled in said case 8|, transversely of the tractor, is a shaft 84, one end of which extends beyond the case 8| at the same side of the power take-off stud M of the tractor.

tractor as that of the lift lever 88. To this extended end of said shaft 84, the reel 88 is flxed. Revolubly mounted in the case 8| is a bevel gear 88 having a hub formed with an axial socket of angular cross-section into which extends the Meshing with said bevel gear 88 is a second bevel gear 88, the same being revolubly mounted in the case and held against axial movement therein by a bearing 81. The gear 88 axially coincides with the axis of the shaft 84 and at the side thereof adjacent said reel 88, said gear 88 is formed with an internal annular beveled clutch surface 88. On the case 8| and in opposition to said clutch surface 88 is a similarly formed brake surface 88. Fixed to the shaft 84 between said clutch and brake surfaces 88, 88 is compound clutch-brake member 18 having oppositely beveled external annular surfaces ll, 12, the surface being a clutch surface matching said clutch surface 88 on the bevel gear 88 and the surface I2 being a brake surface matching said brake surface 88 on the case 8|. Coiled about the shaft 84 between the bevel gear 88 and the clutch-brake member 18 is a compression spring 13 acting normally to slide the shaft 84 axially to a position wherein the brake surface 12 on the clutch-brake member 18 ngages the brake surface 88 on the case 8| and wherein the clutch surface ll of saidclutch-brake member 18 is disengaged from the clutch surface 68 of the bevel gear 66. For countering the action of said spring 13, a hand lever 14 is employed, the same being pivoted on and extending into the case 6|. This lever 14 is accessible at its upper end to an operator seated in the tractor seat 15. The lower end of said hand lever 14 reaches into an annular groove 16 in a shifting collar 11 fixed to the shaft 64. Said lever 14 acts through said collar 11 to shift the shaft 64 against the force of said spring 13 to disengage the brake surface 12 of the clutch-brake memberlfl from the brake surface 69 on the case 6| and to engage the clutch surface 1| of said clutch-brake member with the clutch surface 68 on the bevel gear 68.

In use and while the machine is being driven from place to place to pick up and to dump material, the boom structure-B is held in elevated position with the fork C clear of the ground surface, such positioning of the boom structure being accomplished, first, by swinging the lever 14 to the left to effect the reeling in of the hoisting cable 58 and, secondly. by releasing said lever to allow the'automatic braking of said reel 68 against unwinding rotation. Arriving at the side of the material to be picked up, the lever 14 is eased to the left to enable the reel 60 to unwind under restraint and thus control the descent of the boom structure B to a position presenting the tines 24 of the fork C to the work at the desired elevation. Advancing the machine and thrusting the fork 0 into the material to be handled, said fork will be loaded with material. Thereupon, the operator will swing the lever 14 to the left and then release it to'elevate and to hold the boom structure B while the machins is in transit to the site where the load on the fork is to be dumped. Arriving at such site, the desired elevation of the boom structure 13 is attained, if not theretofore attained, and the fork C is then released to enable it to tilt forwardly about the axis of its cross-shaft 25, under the weight of its load, and dump such load from its open front end. For releasing the fork C for such gravitational tilting load-dumping movement, a trip-lever 18 is supplied within easy reach of the operator on the tractor seat 15. This triplever 18 is pivoted to the beam '1 at the left side of the machine and is connected by means of rod or cable 19 with the upper arm 38 of the lever 38 on the rock-shaft 34. A pull upon said triplever 18, against the action of the spring 48, turns the rock-shaft 34 and retracts the latchmember D sufficiently to withdraw its latching head 32 from the latching flange 80 oithe fork C and free said fork to its gravitational tilting movement. This tilting dumping movement of the fork, induced by the weight of the load thereon, is accomplished'against the action of a resetting-spring 80 stretched between an anchoring hook 8| on one of the beams l1 and a second anchoring hook 82 on the tie-bar 3| at the back of the fork C. Although the power of the spring 80 is insufficient to balance the loaded fork, it is of sufficient power to tilt the fork C back into the normal working position thereof after the load has been dumped from said fork.

Thus, uponthe forward and rearward tilting of the fork C in dumping a load and in restoring the fork to its working position relative to the beams [1, the operator is obliged only to exert a single pull upon the trip-lever 18, such act being followed, first, by the self-tilting of the loaded fork C in discharging its load and, secondly, by

the spring induced return of said fork, to its normal load-receiving relation.

at the front end thereof like the fork 0. Also,

like said fork C, the scoop will have a pivot shaft with portions thereof receivable in the bearingnotches. 23 in the beams l1 and, further, will have a latching projection at the back thereof, equivalent to the flange 30 of the fork C and which is received in the notch 31 of the latchmember D.

Attention is invited to the relative positions assumed by the beams l1, lift arms 41 and lift lever 56 at the various stages in the elevation of the boom structure B. At the outset, when the greatest effort is required in initially lifting a load, the leverage between parts of the lift mechanism is most highly effective and this, of course,

is accompanied with the optimum condition, wherein the speed of the initial upward movement of the load-carrying member C is rendered relatively slow.

End-thrust collars 88 fixed to the transverse shaft 48 by set screws 84 oppositely bear against the cap-bearings 49 of the brackets 50 on the tractor frame l8. transverse shaft 48 of axial movement relative to the tractor frame It) and thus stabilize the lift arms 41 transversely of the tractor and there,- by enable said lift arms, 41, in turn, similarly to stabilize the beams l1, it being understood that the other faces of the lift arms 41 constitute side-thrust surfaces against which the inner faces or side-thrust surfaces of the beams l1 bear. This is an important feature in a machine of the instant nature, wherein heavy side thrusts are imposed upon the parts in a manner tending injuriously to move the boom structure B transversely relative to the tractor body Ill.

The underslung disposition of the transverse shaft 48 is important not only in effecting the emcient transmission of forces between the lift arms 41 and beams [1 in elevating the boom structure B, but also in facilitating the attachment of the load-moving mechanism to and the detachment thereof from the tractor A. In preparing to attach said mechanism to the tractor, the boom structure B and the assembled lift arms 41 are placed on the ground. The front wheels ll of the tractor are then run over the transverse shaft 48, said shaft being thereafter lifted the short distance required for application to the cap-bearings 49 on the depending brackets 50. The beams l1are, of course, easily attached to and removed from the sleeve-mounts l8 and the clutch-brake mechanism E alone, or along with said sleeve-mounts I8, is readily attached to or removed from the tractor.

From the foregoing, it will be readily comprehendecl that our improved material-handling machine can embrace any of numerous suitable tractors; that the loader proper can be quickly and easily attached to such tractor and likewise detached therefrom to make the same available for any of the usual uses of the conventional tractor; that the forces exerted through the lift mechanism for raising, holding and lowering the boom structure are efllciently applied thereto in its various stages of operation; that said boom structure is effectively braced against transverse movement relative to the tractor by the lift mechanism itself; that the over-all height of the machine is not in excess of that of the tractor,

- These collars 83 deprive the except upon the elevation of the load-carrying member thereabove and, then, not in excess of the height occupied by such member; that the construction of our machine, while relatively simple and inexpensive, is extremely sturdy, and that said machine is capable of ready and successful operation at the hands of any ordinary user and with relatively little effort on his part.

Changes in the specific form of our invention, as herein described, may be made within the scope of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of our invention.

Having described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. In a tractor-mounted material-handlin machine, a tractor including a wheeled body, and an engine supported thereby, load-moving means carried by the tractor and including a pair of beams at opposite sides of the body extending fore and aft thereof and pivoted at' their rear ends to the body to swing up and down about a transverse axis, a load-carrying member carried by the beams at the front thereof forwardly of the tractor, bearing-brackets depending from said body, a transverse rock-shaft under the body mounted to turn in said bearing-brackets, means on said rock-shaft cooperating with thebearingbrackets to deprive the rock-shaft of axial movement relative to said body, lift arms issuing forwardly from opposite ends of'the rock-shaft, each arm swinging in a plane located inside of and adjacently paralleling the plane of movement of the beam at its respective side of the machine, bearings, one for each arm, each bearing being disposed transversely outward relative to its respective arm, each beam having a downwardly facing track at its forward portion slidably, supported on the bearing for the adjacent arm, said arms providing side-thrust elements for countering side thrusts of said beams relative to said body, a lever issuing from said rock-shaft, and lever operating means connected with said lever and powered by the engine to swing said lever and through the same to swing said beams.

2. In a tractor-mounted material-handling machine, a tractor including a wheeled body, and an engine supported thereby, load-moving means carried by the tractor and including a pair of beams at opposite sides of the body and extending fore and aft thereof and pivoted at their rear ends to the body to swing up and down about a transverse axis, a load-carrying member carried by the beams at the front thereof forwardly of the tractor, a transverse rock-shaft underslung from the body of the tractor and deprived of axial movement relative thereto, lift arms issuing forwardly from opposite ends of the rockshaft, each arm swinging in a plane adjacent to the plane of movement of the beam at its respective side of the machine, bearings, one for each arm, each bearing being disposed transversely outward relative 'to its respective arm, each beam having a downwardly facing track at its forward portion slidably supported on the bearing for the adjacent arm, said arms having outer thrust surfaces and said beams having inner thrust surfaces respectively cooperating with the thrust surfaces on said arms to counter side thrusts of said beams relative to said body, a lever issuing from said rock-shaft, lever operating means connected with said lever and powered by the engine to swing said lever and through the same to swing said beams.

3. In a tractor-mounted material-handling machine, a tractor including a wheeled body,

and an engine supported thereby, load-moving means carried by the tractor and including a pair of beams at opposite sides of the body, extending fore and aft thereof and pivoted at their rear ends to the body to swing up and down about a transverse 'axis, a load-carrying member carried by the beams at their front ends forwardly of the tractor, lift arms pivoted to the body at opposite sides thereof, each of said arms beingswingable between downwardly and upwardly inclined positions and in a plane adjacent to the plane of movement of the beam at its respective side of the machine, bearings, one for each arm, each bearing being disposed transversely outward from the outer side of its respective arm and spaced from its upper edge and from the free endthereof, each beam having a downwardly facing track slidably supported on the bearing for the adjacent arm, said arms having outer thrust surfaces and said beams having inner thrust surfaces respectively cooperating with the thrust surfaces on said arms in all positions thereof to counter side thrusts of said beams relative to said body, and means powered by the engine to swing said arms.

4. In a tractor-mounted material-handling machine, a tractor including a wheeled body, and an engine supported thereby, load-moving means carried by the tractor and including a pair of beams at opposite sides of-the body, extending fore and aft thereof and pivoted at their rear ends to the body to swing up and down about a transverse axis, a load-carrying member carried by the beams at their front ends forwardly of the tractor, lift arms pivoted to the body at opposite sides thereof, each of said arms being swingable between downwardly and upwardly inclined positions and in a plane adjacent to the plane of movement of the beam at its respective side of the machine, means connecting each arm with its respective beam for lifting the latter through the former, said arms having outer thrust surfaces and said beams having inner thrust surfaces respectively cooperating with the thrust surfaces on said arms in all positions thereof to counter sidethrusts of said beams relative to said body, and means powered by the engine to swing said arms.

CHARLES R. KOEHL.

RICHARD MESSNER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

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